1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to waste food disposers, more particularly, to an apparatus for controlling operation of a waste food disposer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Under-sink waste food disposers are common household appliances. There are two basic types of disposers: continuous feed and batch feed. In a continuous feed disposer, the unit is turned on by a remote wall switch before inserting the waste. The waste is inserted in small quantities as the disposer is running until there is no more. In a batch feed disposer, a load of waste is inserted into the grind chamber and the motor is started by placing a stopper down into the mouth of the drain flange. Typically, the stopper has a permanent magnet that is sensed when the stopper is inserted into the drain, either starting the disposer, thereby starting the motor.
There are several shortcomings to the batch feed disposer. First, the disposer cannot run without the stopper, making the stopper indispensable. Unfortunately, the stopper is not attached to anything, so it can be misplaced or lost, rendering the disposer useless. Second, a disposer relies on a lot of water to turn the food bits into a slurry that can be easy flushed through to the drain. With a stopper, the flow of water into the disposer may be restricted, resulting in less than optimal performance of the disposer.